Squid Game
We knew that Squid Game would be huge when it returned for season 2, given that season 1 was the most-watched Netflix series ever by a significant margin. But now it has set an entirely new record.
We don’t know viewership yet, it’s too early for that, though of course that’s going to be enormous. Rather, the record in question is that Squid Game season 2 is the first series to debut at #1 in all 93 countries where Netflix is available. That’s everywhere from the US, of course, to Cyprus to Honduras to Kenya to Oman to Thailand. The entire globe.
This simply doesn’t happen. Even big shows that do well on global charts never debut simultaneously at #1 on the service, as some regions always prefer one series over another, however popular. But here this is a clean sweep for Squid Game, which is not something the original achieved as it took some time to go fully viral. But not Stranger Things, not Wednesday, not anything else.
Squid Game
Now we wait for viewership. I did not imagine that Squid Game season 2 would be able to break the 2.2 billion hours viewed of season 1, but I suppose I cannot rule it out with a debut like this. You might think that subsequent seasons of shows cannot get higher viewership by definition if you need to catch up on a series, but that just isn’t the case. Shows like Money Heist and Stranger Things have much higher viewership than when they started.
If there is one thing working against Squid Game season 2 in this case, it’s that this season is just 7 episodes, down from 9 in season 1, meaning completing the season would be two less hours per viewer. Though it could get more viewers overall.
Additionally, Squid Game season 2 is not being received as well as season 1. It’s down to a 63% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes as opposed to an 83% for season 1. I suspect that much of this is due to the fact that this feels like more like half a season with (spoilers) the show stopping in the middle of the games with the rest to be finished in season 3 next year. It does end somewhat abruptly and plotlines that were built up end up going nowhere, perhaps a bit too much of a set-up for season 3. So I certainly understand the criticism.
I suspect that Squid Game season 2 will put up much better numbers than season 1 at least in its debut week, but long term? Can it catch the original? That remains to be seen, but this record-breaking debut could not be a better start.
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Pick up my sci-fi novels the Herokiller series and The Earthborn Trilogy.
